1.6. — 30.9.2016

Sculpture Line
Prague 2016

The sculpture, with the explanatory title of E. T., belongs to a recent series of works by Riccardo Cordero where the desire to trace the space where they’re placed as a physical “presence” and not just as a representative one. A nucleus composed of circular elements, cut and incomplete, born from four vertical elements that looks like they are keeping it down, in place, as to prevent its explosion. The apparent instability of the whole creates complex and unexpected visual paths. The eye of the observer is led to follow the curved lines and the short segments unconsciously trying to unravel this bundle of signs where the relation between filled and empty spaces creates an evocative formal complexity. The artist, not by chance, insists on the concepts of the “sculpture as a presence”, that is the activation of simultaneous perceptions that involves the artworks and their surrounding without having one prevailing over the other.

Manta rays – noble majestic underwater creatures whose movement paradoxically resembles the flight of birds. Elegant dancers moving in the depths of indomitable oceans. Graceful curves intersecting one of the truly last wildernesses of the world. The world with which we are so interconnected and yet it is so remote from us and so unknown. And perhaps because of all these contrasts, fascinated by the robustness and fragility at the same time, I decided to expose this creature in a completely different environment, different perspective, in a completely different context. When walking beneath the angel wings, you can dream, unleash your imagination and get carried away to the ocean bottom or somewhere further away...

“People have a certain visual form fixed in their brain for each single thing. Thanks to that they are able to determine in a split second what they are looking at. Most people perceive the polar bear as white and fluffy. I have broken this form by depriving the animal of its hair and colour. Thus I deprived the viewers of the primary certainty of knowing what exactly they were looking at."

“Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.
The important thing is not to stop questioning.“
Albert Einstein, 1879-1955

When you look at a wave, it can seem quite mysterious. Lying between air and water, it whispers a simple question; where exactly does the wave exist?

It is a form that doesn‘t have substance. Vague, the uncertain image is always surging in between imagination and information. Perception is like a wave. And if the perception is a form, our existence would be a form as well. It might be possible to say that our existences are continuous of reactions.

“The horses on the piazzetta of the National Theatre belong to the project of four horses, one of which is bearing a rider. I created this group in several variants: in red laminate which stands out in the landscape due to unrealistic colour, in another case I used a structure made from peanut shells. However, the sculptures could not be exhibited in the exterior, so there was no choice but to start recasting them gradually in bronze. The first two horses of this series are now situated in front of the New Stage building as a part of the Sculpture Line 2016 project. This location turned out to be not only visually appealing but also very symbolic. It is impossible to omit the connection with the sculptures decorating the roof of the National Theatre; moreover, the horses are located at the junction between the New Stage and the Old Stage, which corresponds with their nature. They are conceived as a traditional sculpture but their impression bears a considerable measure of update of this topic.”

The first men were the fruit of seed germination of nowhere; half man half chrysalis. These men kept the essence of creation. Guardians of the miracle, celebrating the creation; light, insects, fish, animals, flowers.
Men-seeds did not suffer the finiteness of their existence, they knew they had sprung from the creative nowhere and return to her, their soul would return to the infinite substance, therefore, when they died, they were wrapped in textures beyond the earth transformed into stone. Men-seed group stopped to
contemplate the ascension of souls and the walking of the living seed-man.

The installation consists of 100 hay drying devices (each with 3 cross braces – also known as Hoanzn, Triste, Heumandln, Dieme, Schober,...) and provides a reference to the origin and development of ancient agricultural practices since the Iron Age which has shaped the landscape in Europe for centuries . Each „Hoanzn“ is made by hand, and is therefore unique. These devices were highly valued, each provided with a monogram or name . The objects are returned as Land Art in memory of this traditional cultural practice of hay making into the landscape or now in Prague into an urban context and connects the present with a human measure in agriculture from yesterday.

"It is probably known that female swimmers and other floating ladies are my life’s theme. Legs from water are something a bit different. It is a part of handstand visible above the water level and this is usually the most joyous expression of children and girls in water. Well, I also sometimes give it a try. This tomfoolery makes happy even those who watch it; and how to discover the joy also in places where girls usually do not bathe, or where they sometimes bathe but it’s just too cold for bathing at the moment? A sculpture can replace all sorts of people – dead poets, saints but also criminals. So why legs from water should not have a monument if they represent the symbol of the most important thing why we are here - the joy of life?"

The sculpture called “Rossete“ forms a part of the author’s series “Metamorfloris“ which he is recently intensively working on. The inspiration by nature and its basic regularities is obvious not only from the title, in case of Rossete we can really talk about material turned into flowers. The static nature of the sculpture is suppressed with internal tension and apparent motion depending on the movement of the observer.

Chairs for the city is her art project of bright ceramic sofas and chairs installed in busy city streets for permanent or temporary periods of time. Stop for a moment on an unscheduled location right on the street, sit down, touch the shiny smooth shapes, feel and enjoy the colors. Nestle down for a while and look around you or close your eyes and listen to the sounds of the street. Allow yourself to be present in the moment.

The sculpture called “Tree“ is a generous composition of primary natural shapes created from metal industrial segments. The author, has been working with this material for many years. The author regards placement of the industrially processed sculpture in front of the Industrial Palace of the Prague Exhibition Grounds as symptomatic. From the point of the view of the time horizon, it is very probable that a large tree used to grow on this spot. It is therefore paying a homage to the basic natural forces that surround us.

“Three sculptures created from beer tanks are engaged in a quiet conversation. The title is inspired by a passage from the Ulrych siblings‘ song, which goes something like this: ...you have to talk quietly to hear...”

Conch – a hydrokinetic sculpture. The motion effect created by the weight of water flowing in relieves the stone of the proverbial weight, giving the sculpture seeming lightness. Unstable, constantly disturbed and renewed balance of the two opposite elements, stone and water, creates a meditatively
rhythmic movement. The soft overcomes the hard, emptying fulfils, contrasts harmonize. “Conch“ is the materialization of Taoist principles and it is up to the audience what they are capable of viewing.

“I created the sculpture called “Corpus Angelicus“ as a part of an exhibition of the same name which I had at Prague Castle in 1997. An angel is a constant theme for me, this mysterious being is actually present in all religions. It is a sort of a positive, ecumenical symbol and I am enticed to shape it and give it various forms and constantly retransform it. An angel has probably never been seen before but we may believe that it exists in some form and this always stirs my imagination. That is why “Corpus Angelicus“, a sculpture made of robust cast steel, in contrast to the notion of a totally unknown and elusive ethereal being. A sort of shell of the Angel, it can be understood like this. But I leave it to the viewer. I am glad that the object be installed in Břežany near the monastery and I hope that it will give joy to the citizens and maybe also a reason to pause and think.”

“Interconnection of sport and art is current nowadays. In my work and life, first as the Czech snowboarding national team member and now as the coach of the Olympic champion and, at the same time, first as a student of sculpture art and now as a sculptor, this topic is always current. Art and sport are some of the basic elements forming the human personality. Sport teaches discipline and healthy lifestyle, art forms your opinions and feelings. Art and sport are considered marginal issues by our politicians, unworthy of being largely noticed. This testifies to what shaped them and what they probably are like. It is necessary to teach our kids something else than what the people who are to shape us were taught. Do exercises and be interested in artistic initiatives, take your children with you, please...”

The work belongs among the set of sculptures that relate to Čapek’s favourite topic – hair and hairstyle. The author traces the individual arrangements of hair changing into hairstyle and ultimately into an ornament. The ornament phenomenon, together with the spatial nature phenomenon, has become the basic principle for creating these “hairy“ sculptures. Although inspiration proceeds from the very ornament, Čapek is trying to hold it back in the work itself, depriving it of decorativeness. The crucial moment of the work is elimination of the face and the pure interest in the hairstyle and its aesthetics.
Thanks to the standing plaits, the sculpture can remind an animal, which can lighten the perception of the sculpture as hairstyle only.

The sculpture, with the explanatory title of E. T., belongs to a recent series of works by Riccardo Cordero where the desire to trace the space where they’re placed as a physical “presence” and not just as a representative one. A nucleus composed of circular elements, cut and incomplete, born from four vertical elements that looks like they are keeping it down, in place, as to prevent its explosion. The apparent instability of the whole creates complex and unexpected visual paths. The eye of the observer is led to follow the curved lines and the short segments unconsciously trying to unravel this bundle of signs where the relation between filled and empty spaces creates an evocative formal complexity. The artist, not by chance, insists on the concepts of the “sculpture as a presence”, that is the activation of simultaneous perceptions that involves the artworks and their surrounding without having one prevailing over the other.

Regarding the form and size, the primary inspiration for the installation emerged from Megalodon, a prehistoric shark. The author himself perceives the object as a shape archetype that can be found throughout the animal and plant world. Location in the pool induces stress and uncertainty (what is happening beneath the surface?), adding dynamics to the statue. Superficially clear shape takes on many forms, including the night one, and provokes the imagination of viewers passing by.

The object enriches the Botanical Gardens with a certain industrial element which – thanks to the combination with natural material – gracefully harmonizes with the surroundings. The sitting figure, made of steel hollow sections, contains the fragments of trees, and thus the sculpture is even more authentically linked to the place; the connection being also emphasized by an intense scent of pine logs.

Coloured glazed ceramics on a reinforced concrete shell. A utility ceramic sofa with organic shapes brings playfulness and optimism into a given public space. In the busy street full of hustle and bustle, the sculpture gives an impression of an island of peace and good cheer, a place where you can “recharge your batteries” with a brief rest.

A statue, running or speeding off, is a symbol of the premises on which it is located. A fragment of the bobsled is transferred into a surreal level where it is carried to the intended destination (the track?) by two pairs of legs.

Coloured glazed ceramics on a reinforced concrete shell. This is a new approach to street furniture. An unconventionally conceived utility sculpture is an inspiration for both architects and city councillors. A ceramic chair does not look dull and it is not a serial product, either. Thanks to its rounded shapes it is playful and original, and rightfully attracts the attention of passers-by.